Co-op Reflection

Emily Dickinson uses a lot of themes in her poem "Nature the Gentlest Mother" such as the beauty of nature and personification comparing it to a mother. A mother is a caring person and makes sure that everyone is okay, such as nature. In a way, nature is like a mother with how it takes care of the world. She takes care of the squirrels, trees, and other animals. She compares mother nature as being patient. In her first line she writes "Nature, the gentlest mother, impatient of no child, the feeblest or the waywardest, her admonition mild" (Dickinson). This quote from Emily Dickinson shows the gentle and patient side of nature, but also that mother nature can be cruel. Emily Dickinson loves nature and enjoys nature and loves nature, which is why most of her poems are about nature. You can start hearing the crickets by the words that she uses. She gives to the animals around her and prays for them, just like a real mother would. At night, she made sure that all the animals had a place to sleep. In Emily Dickinson's poem, she writes "with infinite affection, and infinite care, her golden finger on her lip, will silence everywhere" (Dickinson). This part of the poem talks about her control over everything and how at night she can silence the whole place. Everyone is at peace and ready for their night. We call nature a mother because it nourishes people. We can get everything we need from nature, just like we should with a mother figure. Nature gives everyone a chance to survive in life. Your mother is also supposed to give you a chance in life and prepare you for the real world. Both nature and a mother give you the best that they can out of what they have. She also adds some imagery in the form of sight. For example, the forest and the hill show us imagery. Another example is the nature restraining the rampant squirrel from the traveler. Nature protects us, such as the scenario with the squirrel. When nature is mad or upset, it brings storms and natural disasters. When a mother is upset, it feels like a natural disaster. You can tell she is upset when she slams things down or talks with attitude.
In Emily Dickinson's poetry, she talks about the most unworthy flower. She mentions how it does not deserve a good life, but she is still going to help it live. This is the same with a real parent. When a parent's child does something wrong, they still love them and give them a good life. They try to do the best that they can and try to change them for the better. Her golden finger also shows imagery. You can see the finger on her lips. The color gold symbolizes royalty and higher power, like mother nature. Mother nature is royalty and above all.
Emily DIckinson's poem truly embodies the thought, or idea, of comparing nature to a mother and makes a lot of sense of why we call nature a mother nature.
Dickinson, Emily. "1. “Nature, the Gentlest Mother.” Part Two: Nature. Dickinson, Emily. 1924. Complete Poems." 1. “Nature, the Gentlest Mother.” Part Two: Nature. Dickinson, Emily. 1924. Complete Poems. Web. 27 Mar. 2012. .

Journal 28

Throughout Emily Dickinson's life she lived near a cemetery and this influenced some of her poems and the themes of them. Most of the poems go around the central theme of nature, death, and other natural ideas. She discusses the fly and uses the fly as a thing to show the length of time the body could have been suffering. Death to Emily Dickinson is something that is scary and it involves suffering. This person in the poem is probably dying and the fly is just waiting for them to die so that he can eat parts of the body. The last line talks about everything going black and that this is truly the end of the person's life and the end to the quiet lonely suffering that they are going through. The fly also interrupts the end of the Emily Dickinson's death and this is tragic she wants to die alone and not have to worry about anything interrupting the peace of death. The cemetery is a peaceful place that is always old looking and quiet and that is something that Emily Dickinson could see from her house. Emily Dickinson probably imagined death as a peaceful and quiet thing, but instead her death is interrupted by this annoying fly. " I heard a fly buzz when I died" is the poem that is somewhat Emily Dickinson's idea of death but the interrupted death by this stupid fly. The fly could interrupt the movement of the soul and send her down and maybe not allow her into Heaven. The fly may symbolize the devil and that he is taking her soul away from the grace of Heaven. The quietness of death is the peaceful passing that may be taken away from the people with the sound of the fly buzzing during their final breathes. Emily Dickinson believes that death should be quiet and peaceful and still. Death is a natural part of life and it can not be avoided but should be a simple end that does not hurt.

Journal 27

Emily Dickinson wrote many of her poems to the tune of "Amazing Grace" and other hymns this is very significant because this shows that she was spiritual and not just an isolate crazy lady. The spiritual songs that she choose and having them fit with her poems of the nature and the connection of the Earth and the beauty in nature. The songs talk about the beauty of things in nature and how things can be better. Emily Dickinson believed in the spiritual world but not in human nature. She was Christian and this is another factor that contributed to the use of "Amazing Grace" and other spiritually related songs. Emily Dickinson lived her life more for the spiritual angle of life and not so much among the rest of the human world. She did not like the real world because they were full of opinions and were not the best people in the world. Emily Dickinson liked the purity of religion but she also questioned some of her beliefs. The nice part of Emily Dickinson's poems having a song to go along with them is that it makes the song more easily to relate and speak later on. Emily Dickinson struggled with her views and this influenced some of her poems and the ideas that she expressed to help her understand her opinions and get her feelings out. Emily Dickinson worked hard on her poetry and made them fit the songs, which is extremely hard working and showed that the song was important to her and she would not have worked so hard to fit the poem to a song if it was not important. Emily Dickinson struggled with beliefs and religion is a hard subject to understand because it is based on faith and not real things. The struggle with religion is one of the hardest decisions and idea that people struggle with. Emily Dickinson discusses this idea of religion in her poetry and her unsure thoughts on religion.

Walt Whitman writing style

Walt Whitman was a in tweener in the writing world because he was both a Realism writer and a modernism writer, which made his writing hard to classify. Walt Whitman was strongly influence by nature and the power of the world. This love of nature is something that relates to the realism period and also the romanticism period because of the great detail and descriptions. “O powerful, western, fallen star! O shades of night! O moody, tearful night! O great star disappear’d! O the black murk that hides the star. O cruel hands that hold me powerless! O helpless soul of me! O harsh surrounding cloud, that will not free my soul!" ( http://www.everypoet.com). This is a descriptive element that falls into the realism period and also back in to the romanticism where describing the beauty in nature was very important. Walt Whitman uses realism writing in his poem "O Captain, My Captain" because it tells the story of Abraham Lincoln's death and the end of war. In "O Captain, My Captain" Whitman describes the reactions of the people after the war and the sadness he feels for the death of their leader, captain. "O CAPTAIN! my Captain! our fearful trip is done; The ship has weather'd every rack, the prize we sought is won;The port is near, the bells I hear, the people all exulting," (Whitman). Whitman wrote several pieces of literature about the assassination of President Lincoln and the end of the Civil War because that is what he was knew. As a realism writer he wrote the truth and the truth of the that time was they had won the war and slavery was over. The assassination of Lincoln of course provoked a flood of writing—journalistic, biographical, poetic. Of the many poems then written,Whitman's memorials have lasted the best; and in considering what values they select, enact, and perpetuate, I want to ask by what aesthetic means they make those values last beyond the momentary topical excitement of Lincoln's death (Vendler).

Whitman's fascination with the death of his leader influenced much of his writing and also had some modernism parts to them. Modernism was shaped by discoveries in science and advancements in technology and various fields of thought that began to develop in the nineteenth century (Anderson). Whitman discussed modernism in Leaves of Grass "Victory, union, faith, identity, time, The indissoluble compacts, riches, mystery, Eternal progress, the kosmos, and the modern reports. This then is life,”(Anderson). The modernism writing of the kosmos and the modern report are a part of this modern style they were new forms of technology and advancements in the country. We can also say that the Civil War was a part of the modernism writing in that the slaves became free and this was an advancement for them. Walt Whitman was a very creative writer and he fits into many of the different genres and styles of American writing from writing in the Romanticism period to the Modernism period. Walt Whitman was extreme inspiring and loved his country and this is seen by all of the poems about his country such as my favorite "O Captain, My Captain".

"O Captain! My Captain!, by Walt Whitman." Poetry Archive. Web. 09 Mar. 2012.

Archive of Classic Poems." Poetry of Walt Whitman; Full-text Poems of Walt Whitman, including Leaves of Grass, at Everypoet.com. Web. 19 Mar. 2012. .

Anderson, George Parker. "modernism." In Anderson, George P., Judith S. Baughman, Matthew J. Bruccoli, and Carl Rollyson, eds. Encyclopedia of American Literature, Revised Edition: Into the Modern: 1896–1945, Volume 3. New York: Facts On File, Inc., 2008. Bloom's Literary Reference Online. Facts On File, Inc.

Vendler, Helen. "Poetry and the Mediation of Value: Whitman on Lincoln." Michigan Quarterly Review 39 (Winter 2000): 1–18. Quoted as "Poetry and the Mediation of Value: Whitman on Lincoln" in Bloom, Harold, ed. Walt Whitman, Updated Edition, Bloom's Modern Critical Views. New York: Chelsea House Publishing, 2006. Bloom's Literary Reference Online. Facts On File, Inc.

O Captain My Caption

"O Captain! My Captain!" is a realism writing by Walt Whitman that describes his reaction to the end of the Civil War that resulted in the death of Abraham Lincoln who he his the captain of the ship. Whitman's belief in the government and the success of the country to win against the South. Whitman is devoted to Abraham Lincoln in such a way that he refers to him as his captain and his father. The use of a ship and the description of the elements affecting his ships gives the nature element to the poem that is similar to the writings of Thoreau and Emerson. Thoreau and Emerson were also abolitionists and against slavery so they were most likely pro Lincoln and his ideas for the freedom of people (Wayne).

O Captain! my Captain! rise up and hear the bells;

Rise up -- for you the flag is flung -- for you the bugle trills,

For you bouquets and ribbon'd wreaths -- for you the shores a-crowding,( Whitman)

Whitman describes the day after the war has been won but is sad that their leader cannot celebrate as well. The day they raised the flag and he wants his captain to rise up too and to hear the bugle. The people are filling the streets in excitement with the win of the war and the freedom of the slaves. Thoreau and Emerson wanted to get away from the government and the idea of the materialistic lifestyle of America. Walt Whitman was very for the government and the way the government was influencing the the people and the lifestyle of the people. Whereas Thoreau and Emerson would not be as excited as Whitman with the job of the president. The president fell to his death and this destroy Whitman but Thoreau and Emerson would not have felt the same as Whitman because they were against the government influencing the people. This is the difference between Emerson, Thoreau and Walt Whitman.

Wayne, Tiffany K., ed. "Henry David Thoreau and Ralph Waldo Emerson." Critical Companion to

Ralph Waldo Emerson: A Literary Reference to His Life and Work, Critical Companion. New York: Chelsea House Publishing, 2010. Bloom's Literary Reference Online. Facts On File, Inc

"O Captain! My Captain!, by Walt Whitman." Poetry Archive. Web. 09 Mar. 2012.

Emily Poem Hope is the thing

"Hope is the thing with Feathers" by Emily Dickinson is a very natural and optimistic story and it gives people an idea of what hope is and gives it a description instead of just it being an idea floating around. Emily Dickinson compares hope to a bird and how the little bird that sings and never worries he has hope for the future. She sees the bird as a something that brings sunshine to people with their songs even in the worst situations. Emerson and Thoreau are the naturalistic people and they would enjoy the comparison of hope to the bird and how the little bird can bring a lot of light into a dark and cold moment in time.

Hope is the thing with feathers That perches in the soul, And sings the tune without the words, And never stops at all, (Dickinson)
The feathers are warm and they give people a feeling of safety which comes from the shelter that feathers and warmth give to you. Singing is said to help people feel better about their day and a bird can not speak so his song is sung without word. That happy tune without words can influence someone and can change a day and make it better even when it seems nothing is going right. Emily Dickinson was very isolated and that is the life she choose to live and this is similar to the way Thoreau and Emerson hoped to live their lives and in some ways they did. They avoided the government and turned away from society and lived in the woods at some point in their lives (Wayne). Emerson believes he is a part of nature and with this relationship with nature he is  part of the universe (Wayne, Tiffany K. "Nature"). Emerson's belief that he is part of nature and Emily Dickinson's belief that the hope inside us is also a bird and that is nature, which puts a very natural and Eco-feeling to the whole idea that Emerson influenced the ideas of Emily Dickinson's connection to nature. 
Wayne, Tiffany K. "Nature." Critical Companion to Ralph Waldo Emerson: A Literary Reference to His Life and Work, Critical Companion. New York: Chelsea House Publishing, 2010. Bloom's Literary Reference Online.Facts On File,
Wayne, Tiffany K., ed. "Henry David Thoreau and Ralph Waldo Emerson." Critical Companion to Ralph Waldo Emerson: A Literary Reference to His Life and Work, Critical Companion. New York: Chelsea House Publishing, 2010. Bloom's Literary Reference Online. Facts On File, Inc. 
Maryland Institute for Technology in the Humanities. Web. 09 Mar. 2012. . 

To Build a Fire

"To Build a Fire" by Jack London is a tale of survival of the fittest and is a realism piece that relates to the harsh environment and the line between life and death in the forest. The man is freezing to death and can not keep a fire going so he is stuck freezing and his feet are so cold that he can not walk to the safe house station were he can get warm and have food and shelter. This guy eventually freezes to death because the elements were to harsh and in a battle against nature, nature will always win. His company was a dog and he envied the dog because he was designed to stay warm in the element unlike the man and this upset him. Humans were not like people and they have no means to protect themselves from the elements of nature. He tempted fate going out against into the blizzard and he loses the fight and it happens that he loses. Emerson and Thoreau were big into nature but they did respect the boundary and knew the limits of themselves against nature. "And the man, as he beat and threshed with his arms and hands, felt a great surge of envy as he regarded the creature that was warm and secure in its natural covering"( London 610). Emerson and Thoreau enjoyed the nature and were fans of living in the wilderness and Jack London sees the wilderness as a harsh environment that is evil and kills whereas Emerson and Thoreau see the beauty in the wild. Jack London wrote about the naturalistic views of the realism period that present the dangers of going out in the wilderness during a natural disaster. "Then it turned and trotted up the trail in the direction of the camp it knew, where were the other food providers and fire providers" ( London 614). The man could not withstand the environment and the dog walks off to find food and shelter because that is what he needs to survive a lot less than the human. The dog is left to fend for himself in the wilderness all alone with no where to go.

London, Jack."To Build a Fire." Comp. Jeffrey D. Wilhelm, Ph.D. and Douglas Fisher, Ph.D. Glencoe Literature. American Literature ed. Columbus: McGraw-Hill Companies, 2009.603-614. Print.

Richard Cory

"Richard Cory" is a Realism poem that exposes the theory that money cannot buy you happiness. Richard was a great man who was very healthy and appeared to have it all while others were living with nothing. They were envious of Richard and his money, which kept him at a social level they dreamed to be a part of. They were looking at Richard wishing they could be him. They believed that the grass was greener on the other side but hiding behind the money was a man that was not happy about his life. "And Richard Cory, one calm summer night,/ Went home and put a bullet through his head" (Robinson 575). Richard was fighting with something within himself and looking for some happiness, which he thought could come from having money. To others he appeared to have it all, but he was missing something. The man was well put together and was well educated and dressed cleanly with everything looking spotless. Emerson and Thoreau would see his death as a waste and that no one should every take their own life. They both experienced death and it affected them greatly they feared death and were afraid to die and to think of someone taking their own life is upsetting to them. Life is precious and you only get one life to live so you have to find what makes you happy and do that. Richard Cory was not able to find what made him happy and his decision to end his life not only effected him but the people around him that would grieve his death. Richard Cory was selfish in taking his own life and he did not consider how it would influence the people around him and what their lives would be like without them. They are now sad and more people are sad than just the one person and Richard should have reached out to someone and this is something that Emerson and Thoreau would have wished he did.

Robinson, Edwin."Richard Cory." Comp. Jeffrey D. Wilhelm, Ph.D. and Douglas Fisher, Ph.D. Glencoe Literature. American Literature ed. Columbus: McGraw-Hill Companies, 2009.575. Print.

The Darling

"The Darling" is a realism story that is really annoying and it stinks. There is truly no plot what so ever and this woman complains about how her life is so awful without someone telling her exactly what to say and do. The girl does not have her own opinions or views on anything but simply follows what her spouse or someone that she cares about tells her to think. The minute she finds a new husband she jumps right into his life and does what he wants and does nothing for herself, which affects her greatly when they each die. She has nothing after they past away and it makes her a miserable person that no one wants to be around. "She wore a black dress with weepers, having vowed never to wear a hat or gloves again, went out seldom and then only to church or to her husband's grave, and lived at home like a nun" (Chekhov 562). She did not make the outside connections to other people but was solely devoted to her husband and his work. She became that weird woman with cats who does not leave her home when she was not with someone. Emerson and Thoreau would hate this idea of belonging to someone else and needing someone else to be happy. This woman has to have someone in her life to make her feel good about herself. "Olenka could explain everything and give her opinion on any subject you liked, whereas now her mind and heart were as empty as the yard outside"( Chekhov 563). With the influences of others she used their opinions and never really gathered her own or thought about things and just took what others said as right. Thoreau and Emerson were for the power of the people to make their own decisions and this woman does nothing for herself at all. She is someone that Emerson and Thoreau would not associate with during the normal day.

Chekhov, Anton."The Darling." Comp. Jeffrey D. Wilhelm, Ph.D. and Douglas Fisher, Ph.D. Glencoe Literature. American Literature ed. Columbus: McGraw-Hill Companies, 2009.557-565. Print.